Thirteen Arabs, many of them armed terrorists, were killed over the night in an Israeli offensive in Gaza. The raid followed yet another Kassam rocket attack on a Gush Katif community last night, which injured no one. Despite IDF explanations that the forces fired at terrorists shooting at them, condemnations of Israel are coming fast and furious. Hamas vows to avenge the act, and says that Israeli civilians must be killed in retaliation.
The anti-terror offensive began shortly after midnight, when IDF troops, armor, and engineering corps, backed by combat helicopters, entered a Khan Yunis neighborhood - a Hamas terrorist stronghold - near the Jewish community of Ganei Tal. The Israeli forces arrested a man carrying a bomb in his coat pocket and blew up a small arsenal of mortar shells. The forces were fired upon and were greeted with some explosions, but no one was hurt. They left in the early morning hours. Arab sources report, however, that "Hamas activists" and civilians went out to the streets, and "some of them" conducted gunbattles with the IDF forces - at which point, a helicopter fired a missile into the mob. The world media are full of Arab "eye-witnesses" describing the incident as a "massacre," but fail to emphasize that the mob was engaged in attacking Israelis when they were fired upon.
PA spokesmen were quick to take advantage of the situation. Saeb Erekat, ignoring the defensive nature of Israel's raid, called upon the international community to "protect the Palestinians," and said that Israel was carrying out "war crimes" in order to thwart the European Union's "efforts to revive the peace process." The EU's Javier Solana is to meet with Yasser Arafat today in Ramallah, despite Israel's objections; it is not clear how this could "revive the peace process," as Arafat is not considered a negotiating partner by Israel.
The anti-terror offensive began shortly after midnight, when IDF troops, armor, and engineering corps, backed by combat helicopters, entered a Khan Yunis neighborhood - a Hamas terrorist stronghold - near the Jewish community of Ganei Tal. The Israeli forces arrested a man carrying a bomb in his coat pocket and blew up a small arsenal of mortar shells. The forces were fired upon and were greeted with some explosions, but no one was hurt. They left in the early morning hours. Arab sources report, however, that "Hamas activists" and civilians went out to the streets, and "some of them" conducted gunbattles with the IDF forces - at which point, a helicopter fired a missile into the mob. The world media are full of Arab "eye-witnesses" describing the incident as a "massacre," but fail to emphasize that the mob was engaged in attacking Israelis when they were fired upon.
PA spokesmen were quick to take advantage of the situation. Saeb Erekat, ignoring the defensive nature of Israel's raid, called upon the international community to "protect the Palestinians," and said that Israel was carrying out "war crimes" in order to thwart the European Union's "efforts to revive the peace process." The EU's Javier Solana is to meet with Yasser Arafat today in Ramallah, despite Israel's objections; it is not clear how this could "revive the peace process," as Arafat is not considered a negotiating partner by Israel.